– Naina Jain, Additional Secretary, MD International School, Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh

At MD International School, every child is empowered with responsibilities and regularly encouraged to participate in various activities, programmes and presentations.

As we know that Education gives us an understanding of the world around us and offers us an opportunity to use that knowledge wisely. Irrespective of race, creed, and gender, education makes it possible for people to stand out as equal with all other persons.

No one was prepared for the crisis and yet the way our academic and administrative teams have stood up to the situation is really commendable. It was no surprise that MDIS quickly shifted gears as the world was hit by the covid-19 outbreak and has been exceptionally leading the way in terms of virtual schooling. MDIS has a complex dedicated to indoor and outdoor games with all facilities. We are extremely happy to create a democratic and autonomous creative learning culture for our teachers and empower students to shape their own world with the best structure and culture that they will like to live, grow and learn in. Our pedagogy is competent and contemporary, with the aim to prepare students for further studies in the finest universities of the world. Experienced teachers and trainers also stay at the campus to train the children in different games and sports such as cricket, football, basketball, volleyball, badminton, gymnastics, Skating and martial arts etc.

“If students don’t find school engaging, empowering and interesting, then they are not interested in performing”.

Various workshops and faculty development programmes are also conducted at MDIS to help adapt to new teaching methodologies and improve the overall performance of the students. Some of the most prominent components of 21st-century education i.e. –problem-solving, critical thinking, collaboration, authentic learning, appropriate use of technologies, and cross-disciplinary teaching—are our key focus in “Integrating the curriculum’ to engage and challenge children. In fact, the 4Cs of Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking and Creativity are often described as the ‘new basics’. These are the skills, dispositions and attitudes that advocates believe schools need to teach to help students thrive in today’s world and will need to thrive in their future lives of work and play. To successfully manage classrooms in the 21st century-based curriculum, Our teachers have the best skills to recognize the tenets of effective classroom management and instructions.  

We provide opportunities for students to work on collaborative projects where each student takes responsibility for any aspect of a larger group project. For example, students at MDIS worked in groups and participated in various projects under British Council in past. We also provide opportunities for students to work collaboratively on solving real-world problems.

At MDIS, we encourage students to come up with many ideas and implement same in their creativities. No doubt that learning takes place best in an environment where students feel empowered to learn. Our teachers are effective and more like moderators, offering inspiration and guiding students to discover for themselves. We have given our students, the opportunity to be self-learners, which guarantees lifelong learning.

By keeping these strategies in mind, we will be encouraging the development of 21st-century skills in future. Of course, our students may also need time to adjust to this new way of learning, however, they will soon begin to feel empowered to think more critically.

Also read: MD International School: Pioneering contemporary values-based K-12 education in Bijnor